KAMPALA, Uganda — Internet connectivity has begun to return in Uganda after a government-ordered nationwide shutdown that started ahead of the Jan. 15 general election, but full access remains limited, according to local reports and monitoring groups.
Ugandan authorities lifted the outage beginning late Saturday, Jan. 17, restoring basic web access after nearly five days of near-complete cutoff. Users reported that general connectivity began returning in phases, though major social media platforms such as Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) remained blocked on Sunday morning without tools like virtual private networks (VPNs).
NetBlocks, an organization that tracks global internet freedom, confirmed the restoration on Sunday, noting that connectivity levels have risen to approximately 60% of ordinary capacity.
This comes after the blackout exceeded the 100-hour mark, severely impacting businesses, communication, and access to information during a critical period. The outage was initially imposed in the lead-up to 2026 General elections.
The partial restoration followed the declaration of President Yoweri Museveni as winner of his seventh term with 71.65% of the valid votes cast, a vote denounced by opposition leaders and election observers said the restricted internet hampered transparency.
The Uganda Communications Commission said the shutdown was meant to curb “misinformation,” reduce the risk of electoral fraud, and prevent incitement of violence during the election period. Only essential services such as health, banking and government portals remained online during the blackout, according to local reporting.
Minister Balaam Barugahara however surprised everyone when he revelead that the internet blackout was due to the issue with the undersea cables in Mombasa, Kenya.
Human rights groups sharply criticized the shutdown. Human Rights Watch said blanket internet cuts undermine freedom of expression and threaten election integrity, and called for immediate restoration of full service.
The outage disrupted daily life and business, particularly mobile money services and small-business operations that rely on stable connectivity. In some cases, people turned to offline messaging tools that work without the internet.
There is no official timeline from UCC for restoring full, unrestricted access, leaving millions still cut off from global digital communications.
